We hope you find this page useful!!
-Lauren and Christina
Main Characteristics:
Nonlinear- fluid
Complex
Can be read in a nonsequential manner - hyperlinks
Allows readers to:
cut and paste information
download and upload information
collaboratively discuss information
How it can be used in the classroom:
WebQuests - Great for Social Studies or Science Lessons
Introduction
Task(s)
Lists resources for learners
Provides the steps required in order to accomplish the task
Provides criteria or rubric to evaluate learning
Conclusion
Students are often asked to fill out graphic organizers during their WebQuests
Ways to Teach it:
Important to provide direct strategy instruction.
Can use "think-alouds" to model WebQuests or other internet-based activities; Explain the steps you take and decisions you make in order to complete the assignment.
Mini lessons - Used to simplify the steps of the WebQuest process.
Focus on skimming and scanning websites based on titles and descriptions of links.
Model how to fill in graphic organizers: Main ideas, filling in details (who, what, where, when, why, how).
Recap: Ask students to recall the processes you took in order to find the information you were looking for.
Assessment: Self-evaluation think sheet; Individual graphic organizers to complete that relate to the topic being taught.
ELL Students
Provide instruction on the basic concepts of print such as reading top-down and left-right.
Can download Web-based text in multiple languages.
Struggling Readers:
Provide more practice in selecting main ideas and details with print-based stories before working with Web-based text.
Provide practice with Web-based text that is written on levels that more closely match the reading levels of the students.
Graphic Organizers:
Main Idea / Details Graphic Organizer
Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How
Graphic Organizer
Self-Evaluation Think Sheet
Put an X in the box that tells how you think you did.
Very Good
Good
Needs Work
Did I tell my partner why I selected the Web link?
Did I explain to my partner what I was doing when I browsed the link?
Did I tell my partner what I was thinking as I filled out my graphic organizer?
How do I rate my overall think-aloud? (Explain why below).
WebQuests - Great site for locating WebQuests by grade level, topic, and standards.
Citations:
Moss, B & Lapp, D. (2010). Teaching new literacies in Grades K-3: Resources for 21st century classrooms. New York: Guilford.
Moss, B & Lapp, D. (2010). Teaching new literacies in Grades 4-6: Resources for 21st century classrooms. New York: Guilford.
Kaitlin Farrell
Citation: Pearson Education, Inc.. (2009). funbrain. In funbrain.com. Retrieved March
2, 2010, from http://www.funbrain.com/. Reading Level: K-5 Suggested Literacy Strategy: Imaging; Many of the online books contain descriptive text and no pictures- perfect for imaging. Description: This website mainly covers the content areas of reading and mathematics. It teaches these conepts through educational games such as “Grammer Gorillas” and “Math Baseball.” Viewers have the option of searching for games by grade level (K-8). There are also web books and web comics. The site is colorful, interactive, and fun. In addition, it includes a section for teachers and parents.
Jeanna Calia Website: www.uptoten.com Citation:Up to Ten (2009). Retrieved March 4, 2010, from http://www.uptoten.com/ Description: This website consists of many games covered in science, social studies, math, reading, and coloring too. The games depict hand-eye coordination, jigsaw puzzles, and brain teasers as well. Some educational games include "The Beetle Race" where children answer questions concerning the beetles and bugs and win the race, and "The Corn Race" a math game where you help Irene the hen pick up the corn to feed her chicks. The games are categorized up to age 10. Teachers, parents, and of course children, can access the site. Reading Level: K-3 Suggested Literacy Strategy: Students can use the look back and fix it technique where they will be able to retrieve their mistakes that they have made when playing the educational games and come up with a strategy for winning.
Randee Myers Website: Children’s Books Online: The Rosetta Project Citation: Children’s Books Online: The Rosetta Project, Inc. (2000-2010). Retrieved March 9, 2010, from http://www.childrensbooksonline.org/index.htm. Reading Level: This website offers a wide range of reading levels and includes books from “Pre-Reader and Very Early Readers” to “Adult Readers”. Description: This website contains the largest collection of antique books online. Teachers and children alike are able to browse through tens of thousands of beautifully illustrated books. This website also offers books with audio, multimedia books and books in various different languages. There is something for everyone on this site! Suggested Literacy Strategy: The strategy that would benefit students the most while reading would be finding the theme because many of the stories found on this website are older tales that contain a moral as the central idea. Students can become actively engaged in the story as they try and find the author’s “big idea” in the text. This allows students to put themselves in the place of the main characters in the story as they interpret what the author is trying to convey about life.
Jen Levine
Site:http://pbskids.org/ Citation: Public Broadcasting Service. PBS Kids. (1995-2010). Retrieved March 15, 2010, from http://pbskids.org/. Description: This website allows students to play many fun, educational games, watch age-appropriate videos, and play with the characters from the PBS shows on television. This website is safe, appropriate, educational, and fun for children. Reading Level: Grades K-3 Suggested Literacy Strategy: Students can use the main idea comprehension strategy. After playing a game or watching a video, students could explain what the main idea of it was to help them understand why they are playing it and what they should be getting out of it.
Liz Kalajian Website:http://kids.gov/ Citation:Kids.gov (2010). Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://kids.gov/ Description: This website includes an abundance of interactive games and activities for students in grades K-5 in the subject areas of art, science, money, social studies, math, health, fitness, safety, government, computers, and much more. The students can feel safe while navigating this site and will find many appropriate and fun activities to complete on their own as enrichment activities. Grade Level: K-5 Suggested Literacy Strategy: The students can use the monitoring, questioning, and repredicting strategy because it will allow them to solve problems efficiently for a multitude of different activities in which they ask questions, formulate a solution, and then fix or adapt their answer.
Jasmine Martin Website:http://www.brainpop.com/english/ Citation: BrainPOP. (2010). Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.brainpop.com/english/
Reading Level: K & up Descripition: This website has 3 different sections: BrainPOP Jr. for K-3, BrainPOP for grades 3 & up, and BrainPOP Espanol for students who's first language is Spanish. The website offers many interactive games for English, Math, Science, Social Studies, along with other subjects. In the English section some of the games include: grammar (idioms & contractions), writing (copyrighting, dialogue), famous books and authors (Judy Blume, Ronald Dahl). The site also include videos for children to watch on effective study tips and how to search things on the web. Suggested Literacy Strategies: The website has a good video on tips to use to find the main idea of a paragraph,essay or book. The video can be useful to help students who do not catch on the the concept of main idea as well as others.
Kayleigh Shaw Website:www.factmonster.com Citation: factmonster.com (2000-2010). Retrieved March 17, 2010, from http://www.factmonster.com/ Reading Level: 2nd grade & up Description: This website offers students help in and information about several different categories, including World News, U.S., People, Word Wise, Science, Math & Money, Sports, and Cool Stuff. Each of these sections is divided into subcategories and students have the option of choosing which they need help with and/or want to know more about. There are also various educational games, puzzles, and quizzes on the site to offer addition help. In addition to the informational tabs and the games and quizzes, there is also a Homework Help tab that offers helps in a variety of subjects and topics. Lastly, there are fact monster favorites that provides links to relevant or interesting topics. Suggested Literacy Strategy: Under the Word Wise section, there is a subcategory labeled All About Books. There is information about books in this section as well as full texts here. Students can read a full text of their choice and create a summary for that text. There are also book quizzes on that page, so if the class has read any of the books that a quiz is posted for, they can take the quiz to check their understanding and comprehension of the text. In addition to the information about and regarding books, there is also a grammar and spelling tab that can help students if they are struggling with that and quizzes to test their progress.
Erin Jackson Website: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/ Citation: National Geographic. (1996-2010). Retrieved March 20, 2010, from http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/ Reading Level: Grades K and up Description: There are several resources on a variety of topics for students to use on this site. Some of the categories included on this website are Animals, Games, Videos, Stories, Activities, People & Places, and Photos. Under each of these categories are subcategories that provide even more opportunities for students to explore. Children can learn about a wide range of topics through articles, interactive games, and so much more on this engaging and kid-friendly website. Suggested Literacy Strategy: Since there are so many topics covered on this website, students can use the main idea comprehension strategy to get a better understanding of the message of the articles, games, and videos they explore. They can also practice summarizing the main points of what they learn through these resources.
Gianna Seidler Website: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/ Citation: America's Story from America's Library. (2000-2010) Retrieved March 22, 2010 from http://www.americaslibrary.gov/ Reading Level: Grades 3-5 Description: This educational website was developed by the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. in an effort to teach students about our country's history in a fun and exciting way. While students may expect to find only books as resources on this website, it actually provides interactive games and such primary sources as diaries, letters, films, music, maps, photographs, records and tapes, and more, to assist students in gaining a better understanding of and appreciation for America's history, nations, culture, and most prominent leaders. Suggested Literacy Strategy: Because this website provides information that cover a wide range of topics, it is likely that only certain resources that incorporate the same ideas will be examined at a time. Therefore, students can be taught and then asked to use the literacy strategy of synthesizing in order to determine the most important information from a variety of related sources by combining facts and creating a unified understanding.
Alli Clare Website: http://www.starfall.com/ Citation: Starfall. (2002-2010) Retrieved March 23, 2010 from http://www.starfall.com/ Reading Level: Pre K-2 Description: This website originated in 2002 to provide a free service where students can learn to read by using phonics. The site has 4 levels. The first deals with the ABC’s and goes through each letter; what it looks like, the sound it makes and the sound in makes in words. The next level is titled “Learn To Read.” Here children can read basic books and if they need assistance they can click on the words and the word will be sounded out and said for them. The next level has fun games where children and play and make stories about themselves or poetry. The last level has different genres of stories that children can read on higher levels and if they get stuck there is always an option to hear the word. Suggested Literacy Strategy: Children could use summarizing when reading all of the books found on this site. The stories are simple so other strategies may be to in depth to apply. Summarizing would be also be good because through this sites students are learn how to read and to make sure that students are comprehending, summarizing the book they read would be a great way to do so.
Megan Garlette Website:http://ran.org/rainforestheroes/ Citation: Rainforest Action Network. (1995-2010). Retrieved March 25, 2010, from http://ran.org/rainforestheroes/ Reading Level: 2nd grade & up Description: This website can be used to educate students about the rainforest. The website is run by a group devoted to protecting the rainforest, thus information and activities on this site promote conservation and try and instill the belief that the rainforest must be protected. Students can read about the actions they can take in order to protect the rainforests in the world. The site shows letters from kids to corporations and provides action tool kits to get kids started in their quest to protect the rainforest. There is also a hero’s corner that highlights the important work that classes and children have done. Suggested Literacy Strategy: Children can use the look back as fix it strategy when reviewing this website. They must remember that it is important to figure out what is blocking meaning for them as they read. Without ensuring they understand what they are reading, children will not gain anything from this website.
Cynthia Antunes Website: www.seussville.com Citation:Seussville.(1937-2009). Retrieved March 28, 2010 from www.seussville.com Reading Level: K-5 Description: Everyone’s favorite books come to life in this fun website. Students can do many things in this site. They can play games that include some of their favorite characters like the Grinch, the Lorax, and Sam-I-Am. Or students can also print games and coloring activities to go along with their favorite book from this site as well. My personal favorite feature of this site is the “Seussville Storymaker” in which students get to write their own story. Students come up with their own title, choose which characters they want to include, what the setting is, and come up with the text/dialogue. This feature would be a lot of fun for students and would be fun for students who struggle with or dislike writing. There is also a great biography on Dr. Seuss for older students. Suggested Comprehension Strategy: The strategy that would work the best with this website is the look back and fix it strategy. As students are playing games, completing activities, or writing their own story, this strategy would be beneficial. As students are doing one of the previously mentioned activities they can look back and check their progress, answers, and writing to see if it makes sense or to see if it is the best option.
Margaret Molloy Site: http://www.theartgallery.com.au/kidsart.html Citation: The World Wide Kid’s Art Gallery (2001). Retrieved March 15th 2010, from http://www.theartgallery.com.au/kidsart.html Suggested Grade Level: 2-4 Description: This website is a website designed for kids by kids. The website displays student’s artwork all over the world. Students can learn about all different types and genres of art. It also contains a lot of art project ideas and tips for drawing and designing things. Kids can do these things at home. Suggested Literacy Strategy: There are small passages about different genres of art and different famous artists in the past. You could assign your students one or more of these to read and have them summarize the passages.
Lauren Masco Site:www.mathplayground.com Citation:Math Playground. (2002-2012). Retrieved March 29, 2010 from www.mathplayground.com. Reading Level: K-6 Description: This site is all about praticing math strategies and having fun while doing so. It focuses on practicing concepts learned in school while applying them to real-life situations and entertaining games. The greatest thing about this site are the interactive games; they range from
logic puzzles to word problems to concept practice. It also has math flash cards and manipulatives for students to practice with. Suggestd Literacy Strategy: The best strategy for this website is the look back and fix it strategy. While students are playing the games and practicing their math skills, they can look back at what mistakes they made and work on ways to fix this to improve their math skills.
Michelle Bonnetti Site: http://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/
Citation:Clifford Interactive Story Book. (n.d). Retrieved March 31, 2010 fromhttp://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/ Description: Students can pick a Clifford book and read it online. It leaves a word on each page blank and gives you a few choices for that word. Students can also listen to each line being read. Reading Level: 24 / K
Suggested Literacy Strategy: For this site I would use the look back and fix it strategy. For students who may not know what word fits in appropriately they can look back at the sentences and try to see what would fit back in.
Casey Caruso: Website: http://www.gigglepoetry.com/ APA Citation: Giggle Poetry. (n.d.). Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.gigglepoetry.com/. Reading Level: K-6 Suggested Literacy Strategies: A good strategy to teach while reading the poems on this website is the imaging strategy. While the children are reading the funny poems, they can make mental images in their heads of what is going on in the poem for a better understanding since there are no pictures to go along with the poems. Description: The Giggle Poetry website is known for its funny poetry for children. This website has hundreds of poems for children to read and rate, has a “poetry class” section where they teach children how to write their own funny poem, has interactive word games for children to play, and plenty other cool things for children to do! Gigglepoetry.com is rated the #1 fun poetry site for kids on the web!
Christina Marino Website: coolmath4kids.com Citation: Cool math 4 kids. (1997-2009). Retrieved http://coolmath4kids.com/ Reading Level: K-5 Description: This website is great for young children to practice mathematics. There are so many resources that children can use, especially if they are having trouble with the subject. The site provides games, mini-lessons, and flashcards. It focuses on different concepts such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, long division, geometry, fractions, decimals, and pre-algebra. There are puzzles and worksheets that children can use to practice their math. Literacy Strategy: The best strategy to use for this website would be the look back and fix it strategy. Students can complete games, puzzles, and the worksheets that are provided. Whichever problems they get wrong or need more help in, they can look back and learn how to get the correct answer. With this strategy they can go back, fix their problems, and learn from the mistakes they previously made.
Debra Szubrowski Title: http://www.nasa.gov Citation: NASA Kids’ Club (n.d) Retrieved April, 3, 2010 from http://www.nasa.gov Reading Level: Grades 3-6 Description: This website branches off from the official NASA website. It includes kid friendly astronomy information, photos of the space station, space craft and astronauts and dozens of games. These are fun math and logic games that are designed to improve children’s skills in those areas. Suggested Comprehension Strategy: Main idea would be a good strategy to use with this website. Every article, game and collection of photos has a main topic or idea. For instance, every game has a specific point to it. For one game, the main point is to complete the pattern. Students can play the game and then figure out the main idea.
Tom Medvecky Title: Historychannel.com Citation: The History Channel (n.d) Retrieved April 4, 2010 from www.history.com Reading Level: 4-12 Description: This website is filled with games, shows, documentaries and fact sheets as well as guides and interesting programs that students will find entertaining. Although its origins are history, the website also includes math programs and science programs. Suggested Literary Strategy: Imagery is a good strategy that will help students to picture what they are reading. There are a lot of interesting articles and documents that are kid friendly, however they do not necessarily contain pictures. Imagery is a good strategy to use so students picture and create an image in their minds about what topic they choose to read about.
Internet Sites
We hope you find this page useful!!
-Lauren and Christina
Main Characteristics:
How it can be used in the classroom:
Ways to Teach it:
Graphic Organizers:
Main Idea / Details Graphic Organizer
Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How
Graphic Organizer
Self-Evaluation Think Sheet
Examples:
Links:
Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Website - Children's literature provided based on content areas, themes, and grade levels.
Reading Resource Center - Downloadable leveled books.
WebQuests - Great site for locating WebQuests by grade level, topic, and standards.
Citations:
Moss, B & Lapp, D. (2010). Teaching new literacies in Grades K-3: Resources for 21st century classrooms. New York: Guilford.
Moss, B & Lapp, D. (2010). Teaching new literacies in Grades 4-6: Resources for 21st century classrooms. New York: Guilford.
Kaitlin Farrell
Citation: Pearson Education, Inc.. (2009). funbrain. In funbrain.com. Retrieved March
2, 2010, from http://www.funbrain.com/.
Reading Level: K-5
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Imaging; Many of the online books contain descriptive text and no pictures- perfect for imaging.
Description: This website mainly covers the content areas of reading and mathematics. It teaches these conepts through educational games such as “Grammer Gorillas” and “Math Baseball.” Viewers have the option of searching for games by grade level (K-8). There are also web books and web comics. The site is colorful, interactive, and fun. In addition, it includes a section for teachers and parents.
Jeanna Calia
Website: www.uptoten.com
Citation: Up to Ten (2009). Retrieved March 4, 2010, from http://www.uptoten.com/
Description: This website consists of many games covered in science, social studies, math, reading, and coloring too. The games depict hand-eye coordination, jigsaw puzzles, and brain teasers as well. Some educational games include "The Beetle Race" where children answer questions concerning the beetles and bugs and win the race, and "The Corn Race" a math game where you help Irene the hen pick up the corn to feed her chicks. The games are categorized up to age 10. Teachers, parents, and of course children, can access the site.
Reading Level: K-3
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Students can use the look back and fix it technique where they will be able to retrieve their mistakes that they have made when playing the educational games and come up with a strategy for winning.
Randee Myers
Website: Children’s Books Online: The Rosetta Project
Citation: Children’s Books Online: The Rosetta Project, Inc. (2000-2010). Retrieved March 9, 2010, from http://www.childrensbooksonline.org/index.htm.
Reading Level: This website offers a wide range of reading levels and includes books from “Pre-Reader and Very Early Readers” to “Adult Readers”.
Description: This website contains the largest collection of antique books online. Teachers and children alike are able to browse through tens of thousands of beautifully illustrated books. This website also offers books with audio, multimedia books and books in various different languages. There is something for everyone on this site!
Suggested Literacy Strategy: The strategy that would benefit students the most while reading would be finding the theme because many of the stories found on this website are older tales that contain a moral as the central idea. Students can become actively engaged in the story as they try and find the author’s “big idea” in the text. This allows students to put themselves in the place of the main characters in the story as they interpret what the author is trying to convey about life.
Jen Levine
Site: http://pbskids.org/
Citation: Public Broadcasting Service. PBS Kids. (1995-2010). Retrieved March 15, 2010, from http://pbskids.org/.
Description: This website allows students to play many fun, educational games, watch age-appropriate videos, and play with the characters from the PBS shows on television. This website is safe, appropriate, educational, and fun for children.
Reading Level: Grades K-3
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Students can use the main idea comprehension strategy. After playing a game or watching a video, students could explain what the main idea of it was to help them understand why they are playing it and what they should be getting out of it.
Liz Kalajian
Website: http://kids.gov/
Citation: Kids.gov (2010). Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://kids.gov/
Description: This website includes an abundance of interactive games and activities for students in grades K-5 in the subject areas of art, science, money, social studies, math, health, fitness, safety, government, computers, and much more. The students can feel safe while navigating this site and will find many appropriate and fun activities to complete on their own as enrichment activities.
Grade Level: K-5
Suggested Literacy Strategy: The students can use the monitoring, questioning, and repredicting strategy because it will allow them to solve problems efficiently for a multitude of different activities in which they ask questions, formulate a solution, and then fix or adapt their answer.
Jasmine Martin
Website: http://www.brainpop.com/english/
Citation: BrainPOP. (2010). Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.brainpop.com/english/
Reading Level: K & up
Descripition: This website has 3 different sections: BrainPOP Jr. for K-3, BrainPOP for grades 3 & up, and BrainPOP Espanol for students who's first language is Spanish. The website offers many interactive games for English, Math, Science, Social Studies, along with other subjects. In the English section some of the games include: grammar (idioms & contractions), writing (copyrighting, dialogue), famous books and authors (Judy Blume, Ronald Dahl). The site also include videos for children to watch on effective study tips and how to search things on the web.
Suggested Literacy Strategies: The website has a good video on tips to use to find the main idea of a paragraph,essay or book. The video can be useful to help students who do not catch on the the concept of main idea as well as others.
Kayleigh Shaw
Website: www.factmonster.com
Citation: factmonster.com (2000-2010). Retrieved March 17, 2010, from http://www.factmonster.com/
Reading Level: 2nd grade & up
Description: This website offers students help in and information about several different categories, including World News, U.S., People, Word Wise, Science, Math & Money, Sports, and Cool Stuff. Each of these sections is divided into subcategories and students have the option of choosing which they need help with and/or want to know more about. There are also various educational games, puzzles, and quizzes on the site to offer addition help. In addition to the informational tabs and the games and quizzes, there is also a Homework Help tab that offers helps in a variety of subjects and topics. Lastly, there are fact monster favorites that provides links to relevant or interesting topics.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Under the Word Wise section, there is a subcategory labeled All About Books. There is information about books in this section as well as full texts here. Students can read a full text of their choice and create a summary for that text. There are also book quizzes on that page, so if the class has read any of the books that a quiz is posted for, they can take the quiz to check their understanding and comprehension of the text. In addition to the information about and regarding books, there is also a grammar and spelling tab that can help students if they are struggling with that and quizzes to test their progress.
Erin Jackson
Website: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/
Citation: National Geographic. (1996-2010). Retrieved March 20, 2010, from http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/
Reading Level: Grades K and up
Description: There are several resources on a variety of topics for students to use on this site. Some of the categories included on this website are Animals, Games, Videos, Stories, Activities, People & Places, and Photos. Under each of these categories are subcategories that provide even more opportunities for students to explore. Children can learn about a wide range of topics through articles, interactive games, and so much more on this engaging and kid-friendly website.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Since there are so many topics covered on this website, students can use the main idea comprehension strategy to get a better understanding of the message of the articles, games, and videos they explore. They can also practice summarizing the main points of what they learn through these resources.
Gianna Seidler
Website: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/
Citation: America's Story from America's Library. (2000-2010) Retrieved March 22, 2010 from http://www.americaslibrary.gov/
Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Description: This educational website was developed by the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. in an effort to teach students about our country's history in a fun and exciting way. While students may expect to find only books as resources on this website, it actually provides interactive games and such primary sources as diaries, letters, films, music, maps, photographs, records and tapes, and more, to assist students in gaining a better understanding of and appreciation for America's history, nations, culture, and most prominent leaders.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Because this website provides information that cover a wide range of topics, it is likely that only certain resources that incorporate the same ideas will be examined at a time. Therefore, students can be taught and then asked to use the literacy strategy of synthesizing in order to determine the most important information from a variety of related sources by combining facts and creating a unified understanding.
Alli Clare
Website: http://www.starfall.com/
Citation: Starfall. (2002-2010) Retrieved March 23, 2010 from http://www.starfall.com/
Reading Level: Pre K-2
Description: This website originated in 2002 to provide a free service where students can learn to read by using phonics. The site has 4 levels. The first deals with the ABC’s and goes through each letter; what it looks like, the sound it makes and the sound in makes in words. The next level is titled “Learn To Read.” Here children can read basic books and if they need assistance they can click on the words and the word will be sounded out and said for them. The next level has fun games where children and play and make stories about themselves or poetry. The last level has different genres of stories that children can read on higher levels and if they get stuck there is always an option to hear the word.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Children could use summarizing when reading all of the books found on this site. The stories are simple so other strategies may be to in depth to apply. Summarizing would be also be good because through this sites students are learn how to read and to make sure that students are comprehending, summarizing the book they read would be a great way to do so.
Megan Garlette
Website: http://ran.org/rainforestheroes/
Citation: Rainforest Action Network. (1995-2010). Retrieved March 25, 2010, from http://ran.org/rainforestheroes/
Reading Level: 2nd grade & up
Description: This website can be used to educate students about the rainforest. The website is run by a group devoted to protecting the rainforest, thus information and activities on this site promote conservation and try and instill the belief that the rainforest must be protected. Students can read about the actions they can take in order to protect the rainforests in the world. The site shows letters from kids to corporations and provides action tool kits to get kids started in their quest to protect the rainforest. There is also a hero’s corner that highlights the important work that classes and children have done.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: Children can use the look back as fix it strategy when reviewing this website. They must remember that it is important to figure out what is blocking meaning for them as they read. Without ensuring they understand what they are reading, children will not gain anything from this website.
Cynthia Antunes
Website: www.seussville.com
Citation: Seussville.(1937-2009). Retrieved March 28, 2010 from www.seussville.com
Reading Level: K-5
Description: Everyone’s favorite books come to life in this fun website. Students can do many things in this site. They can play games that include some of their favorite characters like the Grinch, the Lorax, and Sam-I-Am. Or students can also print games and coloring activities to go along with their favorite book from this site as well. My personal favorite feature of this site is the “Seussville Storymaker” in which students get to write their own story. Students come up with their own title, choose which characters they want to include, what the setting is, and come up with the text/dialogue. This feature would be a lot of fun for students and would be fun for students who struggle with or dislike writing. There is also a great biography on Dr. Seuss for older students.
Suggested Comprehension Strategy: The strategy that would work the best with this website is the look back and fix it strategy. As students are playing games, completing activities, or writing their own story, this strategy would be beneficial. As students are doing one of the previously mentioned activities they can look back and check their progress, answers, and writing to see if it makes sense or to see if it is the best option.
Margaret Molloy
Site: http://www.theartgallery.com.au/kidsart.html
Citation: The World Wide Kid’s Art Gallery (2001). Retrieved March 15th 2010, from http://www.theartgallery.com.au/kidsart.html
Suggested Grade Level: 2-4
Description: This website is a website designed for kids by kids. The website displays student’s artwork all over the world. Students can learn about all different types and genres of art. It also contains a lot of art project ideas and tips for drawing and designing things. Kids can do these things at home.
Suggested Literacy Strategy: There are small passages about different genres of art and different famous artists in the past. You could assign your students one or more of these to read and have them summarize the passages.
Lauren Masco
Site: www.mathplayground.com
Citation: Math Playground. (2002-2012). Retrieved March 29, 2010 from www.mathplayground.com.
Reading Level: K-6
Description: This site is all about praticing math strategies and having fun while doing so. It focuses on practicing concepts learned in school while applying them to real-life situations and entertaining games. The greatest thing about this site are the interactive games; they range from
logic puzzles to word problems to concept practice. It also has math flash cards and manipulatives for students to practice with.
Suggestd Literacy Strategy: The best strategy for this website is the look back and fix it strategy. While students are playing the games and practicing their math skills, they can look back at what mistakes they made and work on ways to fix this to improve their math skills.
Michelle Bonnetti
Site: http://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/
Citation: Clifford Interactive Story Book. (n.d). Retrieved March 31, 2010 from http://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/
Description: Students can pick a Clifford book and read it online. It leaves a word on each page blank and gives you a few choices for that word. Students can also listen to each line being read.
Reading Level: 24 / K
Suggested Literacy Strategy: For this site I would use the look back and fix it strategy. For students who may not know what word fits in appropriately they can look back at the sentences and try to see what would fit back in.
Casey Caruso:
Website: http://www.gigglepoetry.com/
APA Citation: Giggle Poetry. (n.d.). Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.gigglepoetry.com/.
Reading Level: K-6
Suggested Literacy Strategies: A good strategy to teach while reading the poems on this website is the imaging strategy. While the children are reading the funny poems, they can make mental images in their heads of what is going on in the poem for a better understanding since there are no pictures to go along with the poems.
Description: The Giggle Poetry website is known for its funny poetry for children. This website has hundreds of poems for children to read and rate, has a “poetry class” section where they teach children how to write their own funny poem, has interactive word games for children to play, and plenty other cool things for children to do! Gigglepoetry.com is rated the #1 fun poetry site for kids on the web!
Christina Marino
Website: coolmath4kids.com
Citation: Cool math 4 kids. (1997-2009). Retrieved http://coolmath4kids.com/
Reading Level: K-5
Description: This website is great for young children to practice mathematics. There are so many resources that children can use, especially if they are having trouble with the subject. The site provides games, mini-lessons, and flashcards. It focuses on different concepts such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, long division, geometry, fractions, decimals, and pre-algebra. There are puzzles and worksheets that children can use to practice their math.
Literacy Strategy: The best strategy to use for this website would be the look back and fix it strategy. Students can complete games, puzzles, and the worksheets that are provided. Whichever problems they get wrong or need more help in, they can look back and learn how to get the correct answer. With this strategy they can go back, fix their problems, and learn from the mistakes they previously made.
Debra Szubrowski
Title: http://www.nasa.gov
Citation: NASA Kids’ Club (n.d) Retrieved April, 3, 2010 from http://www.nasa.gov
Reading Level: Grades 3-6
Description: This website branches off from the official NASA website. It includes kid friendly astronomy information, photos of the space station, space craft and astronauts and dozens of games. These are fun math and logic games that are designed to improve children’s skills in those areas.
Suggested Comprehension Strategy: Main idea would be a good strategy to use with this website. Every article, game and collection of photos has a main topic or idea. For instance, every game has a specific point to it. For one game, the main point is to complete the pattern. Students can play the game and then figure out the main idea.
Tom Medvecky
Title: Historychannel.com
Citation: The History Channel (n.d) Retrieved April 4, 2010 from www.history.com
Reading Level: 4-12
Description: This website is filled with games, shows, documentaries and fact sheets as well as guides and interesting programs that students will find entertaining. Although its origins are history, the website also includes math programs and science programs.
Suggested Literary Strategy: Imagery is a good strategy that will help students to picture what they are reading. There are a lot of interesting articles and documents that are kid friendly, however they do not necessarily contain pictures. Imagery is a good strategy to use so students picture and create an image in their minds about what topic they choose to read about.